


Crema Verse Prompt Fill #48

by twobirdsonesong



Series: Crema Verse [51]
Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Canon, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Barista Blaine, Established Relationship, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-30
Updated: 2013-08-30
Packaged: 2017-12-25 01:44:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/947138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twobirdsonesong/pseuds/twobirdsonesong
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>fanonisbetterthancanon asked you: Are you still doing Crema prompts? How about Blaine's last day at Starbucks, or his 10th Anniversary at Starbucks?</p><p>Anonymous asked you: So for Crema, the one thing I really want to see is how/when/why Blaine eventually says goodbye to Starbucks.</p><p>Anonymous asked you: If you're still doing crema prompts, I’d love to see Blaine's last day at Starbucks. Thanks :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Crema Verse Prompt Fill #48

“You can go, you know.”

 

Blaine glances up from where he’s fastidiously wiping down the steam wand with a sanitizer rag.  “Huh?”

 

“You can go.”  Jeff is looking at him as he rests languidly against the counter, amusement plain on his face.  “It’s fine.”

  
A shade of panic rises up in Blaine’s chest.  “There’s still 10 minutes left in my shift.”

 

Jeff narrows his eyes fondly at him.  “Dude.  It’s your last day.  You’ve worked here god knows how long.  You can peace out 10 minutes early.  It’s okay.”  Blaine opens his mouth to protest, but Jeff leans in and settles a friendly hand on Blaine’s shoulder.  “I’m shift supervisor today and I’m telling you to get the hell out of here.  For good.”

 

Blaine wrinkles his nose and then smiles even though his heart is beating too fast. “All right, all right.”

 

He nudges Jeff out of the way and looks at the register for a long moment, the too familiar screen, before clocking out for the last time.  He thinks he might remember his partner number forever.

 

The backroom is mostly for storage, but there are a few mementoes scattered around.  A corkboard with photos of the partners and notes from customers is nailed to a wall above the back computer.  Water cups with names scribbled on them.  Blaine takes a deep breath and tastes coffee on the back of his tongue.  His fingers tingle with nerves.  He thinks it should be easier than this. 

 

He hasn’t needed to pick up shifts at the store in a while, not with Kurt’s growing success and his own burgeoning career.  But something keeps him returning here, to the espresso and the customers and the mark of coffee in his skin.  He wonders how long it’ll take for that scent to leave his life completely.

 

Swallowing down a rush of emotion, Blaine takes his apron off, moving to hang it up on a hook before he pauses, considers, and stuffs it into his messenger bag.  No one else is going to wear his apron and he’s certainly not going to leave it behind.   He touches the edge of the desk and the heavy metal frame of the storage shelves before slipping out of the back.

 

In the lobby, Blaine takes one last look around the store.  Jeff is at the register, waving at him to get a move on (they have plans for a night out next weekend anyway so it’s not like it’s goodbye).  There's a couple of ripped open and emptied sugar packets on the condiment bar, little white granules scattered all over, and Blaine’s fingers twitch to clean them up.  But it's not his job, not anymore.  Blaine takes another deep breath, trying to calm the twisting in his gut, before he turns and pushes open the doors.

 

Kurt is there waiting for him outside, tucked out of the way, and the relief punches out of Blaine in a heavy exhale.

 

"Hey, you," Kurt murmurs, just loud enough to be heard over the endless hustle of Times Square.  Blaine takes the hand that Kurt reaches out to him.  Kurt’s fingers are warm and intimately familiar as they tangle with his.  The metal of his wedding ring is instantly reassuring.

 

"Hey."

 

"You doing all right?" Kurt draws him close, presses a soft kiss to his cheek and then to his lips.

 

"I feel like I shouldn't be this sad."  Blaine rubs his nose against Kurt’s jaw.

 

"Why not?  You have a hell of a lot of time invested in this place."

 

"Too much time." Blaine can't help but think of all the days spent behind the bar instead of working on his compositions, and all the nights spent wrangling annoying customers instead of lying wrapped up in Kurt's arms.

 

"Exactly.  And now it's over.  You're leaving something big behind.  Letting it go. Moving on."  Kurt rubs at his arms.  His eyes are very blue in the late afternoon sun and Blaine could look into them forever, knows that he will.

 

"But it was just a job."

 

"This is where we met."  Kurt says and his smile is soft.  Heat blooms in Blaine’s chest as memories twist and shiver down his spine.

 

“It is.”  He thinks of the morning Kurt walked through the very doors he just walked out of, how everything changed after that.  “We might not have.  You could have gone to any other Starbucks.”

 

"I would have found you,” Kurt says.  The conviction in his voice makes Blaine shiver.  “We would have found each other."

 

"You're so certain."  

 

"Aren't you?"  Kurt tilts his head, lips quirking flirtatiously, and Blaine has to duck in to kiss him again.

 

“Of course I am,” he breathes against Kurt’s mouth.

 

Blaine steps back a bit. "Oh.  You're wearing the coat.  The one from that first week.  I haven't seen this in forever."

 

Kurt grins, preening a little.  "I thought it was appropriate to pull this old thing out of the closet.  Do I still look good in it?"

 

Blaine curls his fingers into the familiar lapels, tugs Kurt back to him.  "Better than ever."  He finds Kurt’s mouth for another kiss and doesn’t care how many tourists are around them.

 

"Would you still have been interested in me if I hadn't been wearing this?" Kurt asks.

 

"I'd have wanted you even if you'd been wearing a burlap sack and Crocs."  And it’s the truth.

 

"Good, because that's the feature piece of my upcoming Winter line."

 

Blaine laughs and the lingering tightness in his chest eases.  Whatever happens, he has Kurt, and that’s all he needs.

 

“Come on, let’s go home.”

 

Blaine takes Kurt’s hand back in his and guides them into the flow of pedestrians, heading away from the Starbucks and towards the subway stop that will take them home.


End file.
